Haunted Theater
by DutchWriters2
Summary: Three months after shut-down. This year's school play will be held in a nearby theater, one that has ties with the past. Exactly hundred years ago, a fire burnt down the building, and legend has it the theater will burn exactly hundred years later. If you listen well, you can hear the old clock of the theater ticking after all those years... UxY, JxA
1. Trailer

**Trailer:**

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><p><em>[shot on a theater near Kadic]<em>

_**(voice-over Theo) A hundred years ago, the Gauthier theater was one of the most known theaters in France. It had attracted the world famous Hora Deltimi, a clockmaker, giving the theater its newest clock. Yet, on the 21**__**st**__** of January of the year 1908, a fire struck the theater, only leaving few parts.**_ A group of teenagers walked towards the new Gauthier theater, reopened ten years ago. They didn't know anything of the theater's history, except the brown-haired kid who shared the same name as the theater: Gauthier. _**The daughter of Mr. Teodoor Gauthier was never found, and many people who were there died. Legend has it that if you listen well, you could still hear the ticking of the clock when wandering on the old grounds of the theater…**_

"You don't believe it, do you?" Odd questioned Theo, "It's just a myth to scare people. I bet every theater makes up his own ghost to attract people. Ever heard of the Phantom of the Opera?" The group didn't see how Theo slightly shook his head, confirming he did believe the story of his old family's theater was real.

**Dutchwriters2 presents…**

"I'm telling you, this place is cursed!" Theo continued, much to the others (Lyoko Warriors, Sissi and William). William stared at him.

"This place doesn't seem cursed to me," he reasoned, looking around.

A spotlight (without anybody handling it) shone to where Sissi stood on the stage, who quickly got out of the way, scared as she was. She couldn't have known one of the sand bags fell down at the same place she stood just one second ago, which could have (heavily) injured her, maybe even killing her with the injuries she might have gotten. Sissi trembled in fear, while the Lyoko Warriors just stood in awe. Theo pointed a heavily shaking finger at the bag.

"_See_? Is _that_ supposed to be normal!?" It was a question William, just a few months ago being freed from XANA, didn't really have an answer for.

.

"W-Who are you?" Ulrich stammered, taken aback by this… well, ghostly presence of a young blonde girl.

"My name is Laura, Laura Gauthier. My father was Teodoor," the spirit answered. _**(voice-over Jeremy *surprised*) She got stuck in time!**_

**From the writer of "Simulation" and "Twisted"**

"Laura, is it true the clock caused the fire?" Yumi wanted to know, and Laura responded with a 'yes'.

"Is it true that it will do it every hundred years?" Aelita asked, with the same response from the ghost.

"And is is true that today is that day?" Ulrich asked, and Laura merely nodded.

_[insert soundtrack: Emergency]_

**Time's running out…**

"If she's here, this clock could be portal!" Jeremy said, enthusiast about this discovery.

"Are you certain about that?" Ulrich asked, and Jeremy turned his head to his friend.

"Not really…" Jeremy gave in.

…**and the only way to stop it…**

"Look what you've done, you…" An outraged William advanced towards the ghost, who merely pointed the palm of her hand towards the boy to stop him in his tracks, and throw him onto the ground.

"I did not do anything, you fool!" Laura snapped at him as he crawled back up, with a surprised and confused look in his eyes.

…**is to go back in time.**

"But… what if something happens? What if you get in danger? We'll have no way to communicate, I can't know if you are okay. How about your clothes? Who says you won't get caught? And…" Jeremy was freaking out, but Aelita could calm him down a bit.

"It's going to be okay, Jeremy," she told him, "we'll find a way. He didn't exist back then, and we'll be careful." With it, Aelita obviously meant XANA, not wanting to say that name aloud with Theo and Sissi listening – it would only scare them even more.

.

"Odd, you look ridiculous!" Ulrich noticed, while Odd himself laughed his butt off.

"You should take a look at yourself, mister fancy-pants!" He smirked.

"So we really are…" Sissi began, but she didn't finish. She was too scared to even notice her clothes had changed, or anyone's for that matter.

"In 1908? Yes, we are," Yumi confirmed as the four newcomers were looking at the clothes they were put in when they ran through the enormous clock to another time.

.

"Aelita…" Jeremy whispered, looking at the big clock standing in the main hallway. He couldn't believe it, Aelita… she still hadn't returned… could she be…

**If you want to stay in time, not left to right, and in rhyme.**

**The Haunted Theater**

**coming 16th October to Fanfiction**

"Wait, where's the manager?" Ulrich wanted to know, after Sissi tried to keep the manager, mister Teodoor Gauthier, oblivious of them trying to stop his brand new clock by Hora Deltimi. Now, Sissi had returned running, but the manager and his daughter, Laura, were nowhere in sight.

"I killed him," Sissi said casually, getting glares and exclamations of surprise and shock from the four Lyoko Warriors.

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><p><strong><strong>Okay, that concludes the trailer from my second CL story! Some of the scenes might change, might be lessmore detailed, or will eventually be deleted scenes.****** To know when the first chapter is going to be posted, just look up, watch under the title in the trailer. Please review and PM and give your opinion - I want to know if this is a story worth writing or not. So, how did you like this little preview?**

**See you next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	2. At the theater

**Chapter 1: Gauthier Theater**

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><p><em><span><strong>La Vraie Liberté<strong>_

_21st January, 1908_

_**Gauthier Theater burns down**_

_Yesterday, around half past eight in the evening, the prestigious Gauthier Theater in Boulogne-Billancourt by Paris had suffered from a fire. With this fire, many victims had been fallen, including the Gauthier family themselves. Just after the fire, the daughter of Mr Teodoor Gauthier, the twelve year old Laura Gauthier, had been declared missing. She was last seen in the theater itself, by Mr Gauthier, and witnesses say they have not seen Laura after the fire. The locals, while searching the ruins, could not find her body._

_Nobody knows who started the fire, and the police department is still searching the culprit. Detectives of great honor have been called upon, and are currently investigating the case. They have already caught some suspects in this case: Remy Gauthier, the eldest son of Mr. Gauthier; Mr. Teodoor Gauthier himself; and the famous Italian clockmaker, Hora Deltimi. We could arrange an conversation with Mr. Teodoor Gauthier. "I had nothing to do with the fire," Mr. Gauthier told us, "and neither do I suspect my own son to betray me by burning off the family's theater. I also am convinced that Hora Deltimi has nothing to do with the fire. His visit to our theater was months ago, when he placed his newest clock into our facility. He cannot have done anything to cause the fire. And me? Why would I set my own building on fire?" He refused to answer any more questions and mourns for the loss of his family's theater and his missing daughter._

_The only leftovers from the fire, are some parts of the wooden floors. We heard news going around that the restoration of the theater will begin within three months, with Mr. Teodoor Gauthier asking permission._

_Advertisement:_

_If you want to stay in time, not left to right, and in rhyme. -Hora Deltimi_

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><p><strong>21st January 2008, 18:00<strong>

Three months.

That's how long it had been since the defeat of XANA. Everything had returned to the way it had been before they had even known the virus, but as friends. William had been forgiven, little by little, and Sissi did a lot nicer to them ever since she became their friend. It still was a great adaption for both Nicholas and Herve, especially Herve, but they simply decided to ignore them as much as they could. Ulrich's grades finally improved a little, now he had more time to study, and eventually Jeremy had admitted to himself that he liked Aelita. He's still building up the nerve to tell her, even though it's pretty obvious.

Behind their backs, Odd had enlisted the retired Lyoko Warriors (including William) to help with the newest school play – just so they could do something together again. When Sissi heard that Ulrich was going to be part of it (forced, but he still would), she immediately wanted to participate as well. The only other boy from their class that was interested in this new play, was Theo Gauthier, a boy that could rival Ulrich, according to Sissi.

So, they were on the way to the address Mr. Delmas had noted down, under the watchful eye of PE teacher Jim Morales. The eight students were surprised that, this year, they could perform in a _real_ theater, and not in an unequipped school hall. All thanks to the newest sponsor of Kadic Academy, so they could play their play in the oldest theater of Paris, without having to rent it, to inspire the youth to consider going to theaters more often. The money would be sent to some organization which fights for the human rights. And a very small part would go to the theater itself.

After a fifteen minute walk, Jim abruptly stopped. Odd, who hadn't seen Jim stopping, walked right into their PE-teacher's back and fell. Sissi and William laughed, the Lyoko Warriors sighed, but Jim didn't seem very amused. "Della Robbia! What do you think you're doing?"

"Me? I didn't do anything, Jim. _You_ stopped walking." Jim stared at him for a few seconds, before going back to business.

"Anyway, this is it: the theater where you youngsters will perform your act, or play, or whatever you want to call it." He pointed to the large building across the street, in a way he expressed he didn't want to be here and was rather bored. It was a very big building, and it also looked very modern, almost like some theater they would find on Broadway, only more modern and more practical. "The newly renovated Gauthier theater. Finished just ten years ago, when you were all crying for your mommy and daddy to stay with you when you went to school for the first time." Jim sighed, staring in the space. "Ah, this reminds of the time when I stood on the stage."

"You were an actor, Jim?" Ulrich asked, and Jim nodded absently, caught up in some childhood memories.

"Yes, I was, but I'd rather not talk about it." He quickly said, and he led them into the theater. The entrance was painted in a beige color, and the tiles on the floor were like a chess board. It was warm inside, and it invited people who looked through the glass wall to which the Kadic students and Jim entered to come in and have a look. Everybody stood there, watched the renovated theater in awe. Only Theo seemed a bit nervous to be here. Jim called all of them together at a door which said 'artist entrance'.

"Okay, since I'm not part of the play, I'll leave you here. But just to be sure you won't make a mess… Belpois!" Jeremy, who sat on one of the benches, looked up from his computer, which he took with him, just in case. You can never be completely sure about certain things circulating around in the network, especially not because there still was a small chance it could still be alive. "You're in charge." Jeremy nodded silently, and got back to his work. William and Sissi were a bit disappointed that they were not in charge. William because he was the oldest and should have deserved the spot, Sissi because she's the principal's daughter and should have deserved the spot. But Jim chose Jeremy because he's thought to be the most responsible out of the eight, according to the PE-teacher. He could be in charge, as long as he kept them in line.

"I'm back here in two hours, so if you all don't want a few hours of detention, I'd suggest not acting like baboons and keeping this place clean! Is that understood?" Out of everyone's mouth came a 'yes'. Jim huffed, and then left the eight students alone in the theater lobby. As soon as Jim was out of sight, Odd pumped his fists into the air. "No school, no Jim… oh, this is sweet!"

"Yeah, but we gotta practice for the play _you _got us into, remember?" Ulrich told his best friend, who seemed a little less happy about that part of the deal. As if Odd only came with them to be off of school grounds without having to go to the factory.

"It isn't that bad, is it, Odd?" Yumi questioned. She had signed her in out of free will, and eventually ended up as Sissi's understudy. Sissi played the female lead, while Ulrich was the male lead. Odd, who also auditioned for the male lead, landed up as a supporting character, but he didn't mind. He didn't have to learn as much lines as Ulrich, and mostly just needed to stand still and make some improvised comments. William and Theo wanted to help with the decor and props, while Jeremy and Aelita would be in charge of all sound fragments the play needed – the techies of the play, obviously.

In the meantime, Aelita went to sit down next to Jeremy. "Jeremy, are you launching a scan again?" Jeremy couldn't keep his eyes off the screen, so he looked at the screen while typing in certain codes, answering Aelita when doing this. Aelita sighed – even when it was gone, he still was obsessed over it.

"You can never be sure," he answered, "the program could have bugged up at the last moment, meaning it could have wiped out XANA, but not entirely. There is a small possibility of it surviving somewhere on the network." He looked up at Aelita, "But the chance is very slim. XANA needs a supercomputer to survive, and we destroyed all of his, and shut down ours." He added, and Aelita smiled, putting a hand on his shoulder. He was vigilant, but it couldn't be good for him to be vigilant all the time.

"Let's go back to the others," Jeremy nodded, put away his computer and went back to the others, who were chatting at the artist entrance. They saw posters of another performance happening just after they would be picked up by Jim, and since all of them knew what that play was about, it was probably sold out. At the entrance, William and Odd were chatting with each other, and so were Ulrich and Yumi, with Sissi constantly trying to interrupt it and try to keep Yumi out of that conversation. And when the two 'nerds' had joined the others, Jeremy noticed something.

"Guys? Has any of you seen Theo?" The others stopped talking, and Odd pointed to the entrance of this theater, pointing out Theo had stepped inside – but with one step, he could already be outside of this theater. It looked like he could wait for them to come back, even if Theo secretly did not like to wait and was not as patient as everyone thought he was.

"That's strange, he loves the theater," Sissi commented, and the others nodded. Theo was a true theater fanatic, both watching it and acting in it. And despite Yumi and William not really knowing the one year younger boy, they agreed with them. If they said he's acting weird, than he probably is.

"I'm gonna talk to him," Yumi eventually said, and she walked to the boy. William and Ulrich sent jealous glares at him. Aelita noticed these stares, and walked over to them so she could talk to them in a more 'private' way.

"What's the matter, guys?" the boys turned around to see Aelita behind them, smile on her face, "You're not jealous, are you?" Almost immediately both started to protest and tried to hide the red blush on their faces. Aelita giggled. Those boys won't let anyone talk to her except themselves… She watched how Yumi finally stood next to Theo and was about to ask what was wrong.

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><p><strong>That was chapter one! More backstory in the next chapter, and a little more plot! Would it be wrong to ask for reviews? Yeah, this is just the first chapter, it'd be wrong to ask for them, but I wouldn't mind if you leave one! Next chapter comes the 23rd of October, and before I close it off, these are my responses to the first two reviews.<strong>

**Lyoko498**(I hope this was interesting enough - I'll try to slowly build it up, and thanks for the review!)

**Guest** (Thanks for the review!)

**See you next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	3. Living legend

**Chapter 2: A living legend**

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><p><strong>21st January 2008, 17:37<strong>

Theo stood at the door. With one step, he could be outside already, but with a few more forward, he'd be deeper in the theater that had the same name as he had. When he was younger, he liked how the theater was also called 'Gauthier' and came here frequently, even if it wasn't because he would watch a play. Yet, now he was older, he knew the history behind this building. He knew the building just barely kept the name, or else it would've been given another name. He knew what happened one hundred years ago, thanks to an old newspaper his grandfather or great-grandfather had kept all those time. Yes, that paper was 100 years old, too, and he still read the article frequently. And when he had signed up for the play, he had not expected Jim to take them to this particular building on this particular day.

And that was just one of the reasons he had avoided this place for almost four years now, for there were two or three more. All of those were crossing his mind at the same time, so he didn't really look at the environment anymore and almost jumped up when Yumi started to speak.

"Theo, are you okay?" Sighing out of relief it was just Yumi, he nodded.

"Off course I am, why shouldn't I?" Yumi raised an eyebrow and the boy hoped she wouldn't see how hard he was lying._ No, I'm not okay. I'm here today! _Later on why he's afraid to be here today, now back to Yumi who didn't believe Theo was okay.

"If there is something," she continued, "you can always tell me." Theo bowed his head.

"It's just…" he sighed, as the other slowly got closer to him and Yumi. "If it tell you, if I tell anyone, they'll laugh." He didn't mind everyone stood around him, but he did mind if they heard the words he dared not speak out.

"We won't laugh," Aelita assured him, giving Odd a glare which should make clear she'll keep an eye on him and make sure he wouldn't laugh. In the meantime, someone had to take care of Sissi not laughing – actually, they didn't need anyone to keep Sissi in line, because she was the only one not interested in why he wouldn't enter the building. Eventually, Theo sighed.

"I'll have to tell it, don't I?" he gave them a weak smile, "Fine! This was formerly known as the Gauthier Theater. Yes, I'm related to this place – my great-grandfather ran this place once. It was one of the most known theaters in France a hundred years ago. It had attracted Hora Deltimi, some famous Italian clockmaker and it gave a new clock to my great-grandfather. And then, exactly one hundred years ago…" Theo hesitated. Should he tell what followed? Up until now, everything he said was believable. And if he continued, they might think of him as crazy, especially Odd and Sissi, maybe William too. He didn't know how the others would react.

"Don't be afraid," Aelita tried to assure him, and Theo sighed. If it was that easy, he would've told them ages ago! Fine, I'll continue.

He nodded and indeed continued the story, "Okay, okay. On this day, hundred years ago, a fire struck this building. Lots of people died that day, and the only thing they recovered from this theater were some parts of the old floor. My great-aunt also died in that fire, they presume – she was just a little girl. Some people who visited this place dare to believe that they heard the ticking of the clock when watching a play. And they also believe the clock of Deltimi was made with black magic, and that every hundred year a fire would burn whatever building was built on top of its ruins. And … well, that's it."

Nobody said a word. Sissi was still waiting for them to come over and hadn't paid attention to the conversation at all. Eventually, someone made the decision to say something about Theo's story.

"You don't believe it, do you?" asked Odd, trying not to laugh, "It's probably just a myth to scare people on Halloween. I bet every theater makes up his own ghost to attract people. Hey, ever heard of the Phantom of the Opera?" He got immediately an elbow in his ribs by Yumi, who also glared at him.

"It's okay, Theo," Ulrich said, comforting their friend "Odd's just a little off today. I don't think it's possible, but if you want to believe it's true, we won't laugh. Right, Odd?" Odd shrugged and gave Theo a wide smile. He didn't know if it was because he couldn't keep in his laughter or not.

"Come on, guys," Sissi's voice whined from across the room. "I really want to get started! If you don't come now, I'll start without you!" No doubt she meant that she would have to call her father to tell him her theater colleagues didn't cooperate, and because the Warriors didn't want to be in any more trouble they decided to just follow her in the room.

Theo didn't move. Although the majority of them didn't exactly give an answer, he knew what they thought of him. He must be crazy, that Gauthier kid, believing in dark magic! He sighed, and followed the group, hoping this couldn't get any worse. He held the article, kept by his family over these hundred years, tucked in his pocket and didn't even think about showing them anymore.

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><p><strong>18:21<strong>

"Okay, let's take a break!" shouted William.

The group gladly accepted his idea. They've been working for almost an hour and they needed the break. Odd dramatically dropped to the floor, crawling away from the stage to the bottles of water Jeremy brought with him because Jim had pointed out they should bring some bottles of water along (it could be handy). Sissi also ran to the toilet, this being the third time in those time they have been practicing. William and Theo helped out a lot and off course Aelita and Jeremy were prepared. The most work done was by Ulrich, Sissi, Odd and Yumi, who had to memorize their lines. Yumi didn't get too much of a chance since Sissi constantly wanted to do her scenes with Ulrich, forcing both Yumi and Odd out of the picture. The two eventually ended up saying their lines to each other, so they had at least a little practice.

Theo didn't think about the play most of the time and was caught off-guard a lot of time. William almost suspected Theo to be a specter, but he hadn't told the others his suspicions because XANA had been gone for three months. And should he have survived somehow, he wouldn't be at strength again after three months. Besides, it was just stupid to think of Theo as a specter, he was Theo and he was working. If XANA wanted to attack, Jeremy would have warned them already and the specter – excuse me, Theo – would have already attacked them.

Theo himself was with his thoughts with the history behind the building. The newspaper was still in his pocket, and he still hadn't dared to look up when the fire broke out a hundred years ago. Yet, when William had announced the break, he was getting second thoughts. Everyone was relaxing, waiting for Sissi to get back and nobody was paying attention to him. He still doubted, but soon his thoughts and right hand made the decision. It's now or never! Just one look…

He quickly took the hundred year old article out of his pocket and unfolded it. It was a miracle it had survived this long for just a small piece of paper, but Theo didn't care at this moment. Thank goodness the hour of the fire was stated. Half past seven, said the article. Theo nodded. Half past eight, 19:30, the time around which Jim would be picking them up._ Or whatever is left of us,_ thought the pessimistic side of the young boy.

"Hey, what's that?" Odd questioned him, and Theo jumped up – Odd had appeared behind him like a ninja, an apparently he's been reading the article he had in his hand.

"Nothing!" Theo said in his defense, but Odd didn't take that as an answer. He snatched the article out of Theo's hands – the article didn't get damage – and ran with it to his friends, an angry Theo following him. So Odd ran towards the group of friends. Jeremy was busy on his computer, finishing homework, while William, Aelita, Yumi and Ulrich were talking to each other. Sissi was still at the toilet, the two guessed.

"Guys, look what Theo's got!" Odd shouted as he handed the article over to Ulrich, drawing the attention of all. Jeremy even looked up from his computer and closed off whatever he was working on to get a closer look at 'what Theo's got'. Ulrich read the article out loud as the others watched the Gauthier boy, who could die of shame. He even had thoughts about what should have happened if he hadn't dared to look up the time. Eventually, when Ulrich was done reading, they all were staring at him.

"Odd," Ulrich started, "what did you want to prove with this?"

"Nothing," was his answer, "I thought you'd find it interesting." Ulrich sighed and handed the article over to Theo, who gratefully took it. Ulrich continued. "Theo, that story about your great-aunt…"

"I believe it could be true," he said truthfully, "I'm not entirely sure about it, though, but there might be something true behind it." The others nodded, and a door slammed shut. Theo screamed, but got silence as he noticed it was just Sissi who returned. Odd started to laugh."It's not funny!" Theo said, but Odd kept laughing.

"You scream like a girl!" Theo suddenly got a red color on his cheeks, clearly ashamed he had screamed for just the door being shut by Sissi. Eventually, Jeremy sighed and decided to help Theo out, walking closer to odd, hitting him on the back.

"Odd, would you cut it out?" Jeremy asked at the same time Theo eventually told them this theater might be cursed, which would be a good explanation if that door had shut itself out of its own. He actually muttered those words, hoping nobody would hear them. Yet, they were all standing close to one another, and William did hear it, walking around. He stood still in the middle of the stage, and looked around. Under him, some new floor with at the right some old wooden floor they had recovered, next to him nothing but the remains of a magnificent arch and above him, just the spotlights and everything else that's supposed to be there. William looked back to Theo and shrugged.

"Hey, Theo!" he shouted to get the boy's attention, "This place doesn't seem cursed to me." William walked back to the group. Just one second after walking away, something crashed into the floor right behind him. All voices died down and looked at what happened. One of those spotlight had fallen down, and if William had hesitated just a few seconds ago or decided to stay there, it would have hit him on his head. It might have injured him badly, even getting himself killed.

"Before you say anything," William stuttered, even though he tried to hide it, "I just looked up and nobody was there. Nobody threw this down or anything," he looked back to the spotlight. Then, the fear really had gotten into his skin and was tempted to believe Theo's theory. _No, _he just could tell himself, _I barely believed XANA and I had proof. I need proof now before I believe his story._ "I could be dead," he squeaked. He had hoped to sound a little more manly, but he could help it.

"Are you okay?" Yumi asked, and William forced himself to nod. He's been through worse, they shared -with the exception of Sissi and Theo – what they have gone through.

"Is_ that _supposed to be normal?" Theo had trouble not to shout. This proved something was happening around here, but not just quite what he believed in. but something strange was going on, he knew that! And it might be because of that darned clock Deltimi made with black magic. If black magic even existed and was involved.

Nobody had a proper answer to that question, or they didn't want to answer or state the obvious. Sissi said no, and the others doubted because of their experiences, they now suspected XANA even though they defeated it. Still, there was a slim chance it survived…

"I am gong to check something," Jeremy said, and all but two got the hint. They would be informed later if the can had picked up an activated tower and had to go back again. Theo and Sissi assumed he had something to take care of for school, but that's all. William was still half in shock about him almost being killed by a stupid spotlight! To make things worse, he was hearing that clock Theo had been talking about. You know, that one mythical clock that's supposedly made with black magic of which you should be able to hear the ticking of when you listen well? William experienced it, and it wasn't funny.

He slowly turned his head to the back of the stage. Precisely in the middle of the wall, from there came the mysterious ticking. He kept staring, focusing on the ticking, which eventually grew louder. He didn't dare to say anything, for the others would surely think of him as crazy or possessed.

"It's nothing, guys!" Jeremy told them, and William sighed out of relief, and as did the others. No XANA, no specter, no activated tower. Hopefully never again. The ticking didn't grow louder, but it now filled the entire room being loud enough to be heard for everyone. Yet nobody responded. Theo and Sissi felt a little nervous, and the others seemed nervous but they were much better at hiding.

"Do you hear that?" William had decided to finally break the ice and talk about it. "I mean, that clock Gauthier talked about… I think I might be hearing it." The others didn't say a lot – they stayed silent before Aelita continued what William started.

"Me too," she admitted, and soon everyone admitted they heard it. So, that was out of the way, now the only think they had to do was prove this was completely possible or not. Eventually, his attention turned back to the source of the sound. He frowned – since when could he see the lies of where the clock once stood? And why did those lines become clearer and since when did the dark wall turn brown.

The clock slowly faded in sight. It could have been his grandfather's clock, but with a hoe big enough to let a teenager pass through. All stood still, and Jeremy had turned pale. For once, Einstein didn't have an explanation for something and this couldn't be logical. It was more likely magical, but that was unbelievable.

And a pale young girl with blonde hair walked out of the port onto the stage, drawing the attention of the children.

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><p><strong>And... cliffhanger! So, do you think Theo's theory is true or false? And what about that girl that just walked out of the clock? Might there be more than what meets the eye? Find out in the next chapter, on the 30th of October, the day before Halloween! And, as always, the review before I end this AN: <strong>

**Bluedog197** (Well, thanks for your review; I was already expecting you. And yeah, I was a bit mean there but with a little luck they won't even perform it. What are your guesses [based upon what you already know] about the girl?)

**See you next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	4. Stuck in time

**Chapter 3: Stuck in time**

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><p><strong>21<strong>**st**** January 2008, 18:27**

If anyone were to pass by the room the children used to practice, they would hear nothing. Inside the room, everyone was silenced as they were looking at the girl. And everyone had a different reaction. Sissi and Theo were visibly trembling and presumably very scared, for they tried to push the other in front of them, as a human shield they could use -eventually Theo ended up being the human shield. William backed away, for he was the one standing closest to this girl. He didn't trust it: magic didn't exist, and XANA was gone … but what if that thing wanted to make them believe he was gone so he could do some attack with this theme? He, as well as the other Warriors, was searching for the Eye on this girl's body, head or anywhere else.

Odd just blinked, thinking about the girl, and tried to stay true to the image people had of him. They almost didn't notice he was almost wetting his pants in fear, for this could be something else other than XANA, which scared him. Yumi, Aelita and Ulrich had the same feeling as Odd. At least there was a scientific explanation to XANA, but they have yet to discover how this can happen. You should be able to say Jeremy looked cool, but was freaking out on the inside. Not as Sissi and Theo, but he did came close while trying to overload his brain in his search of finding a way for a clock – which certainly hadn't been there in the first place – to suddenly appear and bring a girl to them. Only Aelita noticed he was worrying about how this could have happened instead of who slowly walked into the room.

After she had taken five steps, she stopped, and looked up – straight at Aelita. She also suddenly lifted her arm and pointed at her. It seemed the world slowed down, as Jeremy took a step at his left to indicate he wouldn't let Aelita be unprotected, if this girl really was from XANA, or even XANA himself. Aelita gently pushed her boyfriend out of the way and gave him a wide smile. Then, she proceeded towards the girl, who now turned her hand, as if she wanted to give Aelita her hand and friendly shake it. That was enough for Jeremy to feel alarmed.

"Aelita, what are you… come back!" He shouted, and tried to grab her, but she was already away from him and he didn't dare come any closer to this creepy miracle of life. The others held their breath as Aelita approached the ghostly girl, and after what seemed an eternity she took the girl's solid hand.

And the girl pulled Aelita in a sudden mad hug. Then, Aelita under loud protests from the others and herself, freed herself. William grabbed her, but let her go as soon as Aelita was safe with Ulrich, Odd and Yumi. The girl lay on the ground, and got up.

"What is going on?" Jeremy asked, voice high out of fear for this unknown person. The girl got up, and she seemed to have gotten more color on her skin, more human then before. She still had this kind of glow around her, but at least they could touch her (they were unsure) and at least they were sure it (she?) was human, and looked like it. She had long blonde hair and blue eyes. She couldn't be older than twelve, and yet she looked older than the entire group together. She was sad and held a doll in her hand – a doll that also looked quite old.

"Do you mean now, or then?" she said, looking at the clock when saying the last two worlds, and someone let out a high squeal. Later it was revealed Theo had let out this squeal, but at this moment nobody knew who did, until Theo said something which revealed he could even talk higher than Jeremy.

"She talks!" If they didn't know Theo could take a lot, it might look like he was close to fainting. They didn't give him much attention, for they were all interested in the ghost girl with blonde hair.

"What do you mean?" Odd asked her, and she looked at him. Before she even got the chance to tell him what she meant with that, Ulrich asked another question. A question which was a great question everyone forgot to ask – if she was human, she would have a name, right?

"W-Who are you?" the Stern boy stammered, and she turned to Ulrich and seemed to forget the question Odd had asked her just a few seconds ago. She blinked once before answering, looking around the group.

"My name is Laura Gauthier," the ghost girl named Laura said, "My father was Teodoor." Silence reigned for five seconds before Theo came closer to her, curious about her, interested in what she could tell them, about what she could share.

"You're Laura Gauthier," he repeated, "That means you're my great-aunt! I'm Theo Gauthier, by the way. Son of Julien Gauthier – you don't know him, do you? I'm the grandson of Remy Gauthier." Then, her eyes lit up. She indeed recognize the name of Remy Gauthier, her two year older brother. They looked at her, and the others noticed they indeed shared some similarities and saw they really could be family.

"Theo…" Laura repeated the name carefully, trying not to freak because her brother got married, had a son and a grandson. "Did your father give you the name to honor mine?" she questioned and Theo nodded. He indeed had the name of Theo because his great-grandfather had died a lot of years before Theo was even born, but curiously the day Teodoor died, little Theo had been born.

"How old are you?" Sissi asked, not even bothering to say it with compassion for the girl. She was curious how old she was. Laura turned to Sissi, and she turned silent, not even breathing loudly as the scary ghost girl named Laura gave the answer.

"I was twelve, but now…" she turned to the clock, "Now I am 112 years old." Even more gasps and weird looks were heard and given, and they could barely believe this young girl could easily be older than all of them. William already wanted to comment on that, but he decided not to. This might be a subject the ghost girl could be upset about, and since they didn't know if she's got freaky powers, it was wiser to keep his mouth shut.

"How did you actually… well," Odd began, "become _that_?" Laura shrugged.

"I don't know. There was a fire, and I hid under the clock. When it had stopped, I could only move hundred feet away from the clock." Jeremy listened attentively as Laura was talking. There was no doubt about the fact that he was fascinated by her. And with the explanation she'd given, with everything she said, he could probably tell what turned her into the being she was now. The final words were enough for him to draw a conclusion.

"So you're stuck in time." Okay, it wasn't the greatest conclusion he's ever made, but it got closest to everything he had heard.

"Seriously?" Sissi said, "That's all?"

"It could be true," Jeremy argued, "She was twelve when that fire happened here. She hasn't aged since – or, her body didn't age. She was stuck there for hundred years because she hid under the clock and maybe she didn't even know how to get out until now. Plus, she's real – if Theo recognizes her as family, then she might really be his great-aunt."

"But it seems so unreal," Yumi said.

"But didn't XANA too, when we first heard of him?" Odd joined the conversation.

"Do you really need to talk about him now?" Ulrich questioned, keeping an eye on Theo an Sissi, hoping they haven't heard Odd say the X-word. Luckily, they were too busy staring at Laura, so they did not notice the strange word only few people understood. They turned back to the conversation.

"Still is unreal," argued William, agreeing with Yumi. Well, he almost always agreed with Yumi, so this time too. Plus, this really seemed unreal: a clock that faded into view, a ghost girl who just happens to be Theo's great-aunt… can someone just wake him up already? But then, something grabbed him by his collar, but nobody did something. They were staring at the girl behind him, and when William turned his head, he barely saw Laura had her arm pointed straight at him, her hand as if she had a hold of something. When she reopened her hand, William was released. The room fell silent once again. Great, now she already possessed supernatural powers.

Jeremy needed no more proof. This mysterious clock got his attention back, and Jeremy made another statement. "If she really is here," Jeremy said, "and if she really is alive again and… well, breathing, this clock could be a portal!" Now everyone, including Laura, was looking at him as if he was crazy.

"Do you even hear yourself talk?" Sissi asked with her irritating voice, clearly annoyed by the fact Jeremy was telling things that couldn't possibly be true. "Stuck in time? A portal? Now you're just making that up!"

Jeremy looked at the annoying daughter of the principal. "I once read about it, I think, it's coming back to me. That clockmaker, that… that… darn it, what was his name again?"

"Hora Deltimi," Laura and Theo answered simultaneously. After realizing they said it at the same time, they stepped even further away from each other – it was already creepy he talked to his great-aunt, but it really was scary they said things at the same time. Jeremy nodded.

"Yes, him! I once read about him, somewhere, saying that he was specialized in black magic. He made a few cursed or enchanted – or whatever you want to call it – clocks and maybe, _maybe_, this could be one of them."

"Hora made it for my father. It was a gift." Laura said, Theo not speaking up as was his intention. He nodded, for he had heard before the clock had been a gift from the clockmaker. He decided not to talk when Laura spoke, so they wouldn't have to talk at the same time anymore. William turned his gaze from the two blonds to the ticking clock.

"What a nice gift," he said sarcastically, and Sissi nodded. This could not be a great gift to someone you want dead.

"I actually like it," she also admitted as she looked closely at that darned clock. It really was a nice model and Hora knew what he was doing. The exterior really seemed to fit with the time and place it had to belong before it did a horrible thing – if that horrible thing isn't a fantasy.

"Sissi," Theo said, "That clock set this place on fire and turned my great-aunt in a ghost." Still was a nice clock, Sissi thought, but she wouldn't say that out loud anymore.

"Laura," Yumi began, trying to get information about today and the past from an eye-witness of over hundred years old. "Is it true the clock cause that fire?" Laura looked at the Japanese and responded with a 'yes'. Attracting everyone's attention again, Aelita now also came closer as Ulrich asked the next question.

"Does this clock cause a fire every hundred years?" Laura responded the same. Now Aelita also had come as close as she dared to go and asked the third question.

"And is it true today is that day?" Laura looked with her sad eyes at the pink-haired girl and nodded. They could tell she wasn't happy to tell them about their doom: if they told anyone, they would think the kids were crazy. If they left the building and Jim noticed, they'd get a few hours of detention. They were running out of options. And if Theo wasn't scared, he would have said 'I told you so' because he was right all along when the others wouldn't believe him.

"At what time will it break out?" William asked.

"Probably the same time as it was then," Aelita said, and Yumi nodded. She turned her attention back to the ghost girl, who might know what time it was. In the meantime, Theo was gazing at his prehistoric article again.

"Laura, do you know what time it was?" Yumi asked nicely, but the girl shook her head. She didn't know. She was hiding under the clock, but didn't know what time it had been. Great, now how were they ever to know when the fire started?

"Around half past seven!" Theo said, and everyone looked at him.

"How do you know that?" Odd wanted to know, and Theo pointed at the article. "It's right here, listen: _Yesterday, around half past seven in the evening…_ we can get all information we need from…" Theo was interrupted by Sissi's scream. She pointed at the clock.

"It's half past seven right now!"

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><p><strong>I'm mean, giving another cliffhanger the evening before Halloween! What do you think the solution to this problem could be? The next chapter will come at the sixth of November, so you'll have to wait until then to know exactly what their plan is. Yeah, this one relies on dialogue, and I just hope this doesn't pull down a good writing performance. Before I close off the chapter, first the review:<strong>

**Bluedog197** (Well, thanks for your review and you know if you read the chapter [off course you did]. About their clothes, I'm still trying to figure out what they will wear [I'm only sure about two of them] so if you have suggestions, you could always tell me.)

**See you next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	5. Solution

**Chapter 4: Solution**

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><p><strong>21<strong>**st**** January 2008, 18:48**

Fifteen minutes later, they had all been separately thinking about a way to warn the others. After Sissi had shouted and pointed at the clock, William had told her they still had an hour, for it had just been _half past six_, not half past seven. They forgave her small mistake, because she was stressed and couldn't think clear (Odd commented she never could think clearly without having a brain) and they gave Odd glares for his really inappropriate comment. Normally, they'd tolerate it, but they were in a crisis situation, so they had to work together without pestering Sissi or Theo, working like a team like they were suppose to right now.

"How do you even stop that darned clock?" William exclaimed after almost fifteen minutes of silence. He said it to break the silence, he had not expected an answer at all. But eventually, he got his answer from Laura.

"It has three keys that can stop it. If you can find them, you can stop the clock." That caught their attention. Forget any ideas they've had, they had too find those three keys to stop that darned clock! They've just wasted fifteen minutes of their time when they could have just asked Laura how they could stop it.

"Do you know where they are?" William asked her, sounding a little hasty. She advanced towards him, looking like she was really mad. So he did what he thought was best in that situation and backed away while she answered his question.

"I saw them for the last time before the fire," she admitted. Their hope melted away. If she had seen them before that fire a hundred years ago, there was no telling where they were and what had happened to them. They might as well have been sold, burned, used as a tool or whatever you could do with a key like that. Well, they wouldn't be able to see it. At least they tried…

"Then we need to go back before that fire," Aelita said, and all eyes turned towards her. They looked like her like they all silently asked her for an explanation of her words, even though they already understood where she was going. She explained by continuing. "We need to go back in time."

"Are you sure about that?" Yumi asked, and Aelita nodded. She was very sure. And for now, it was the only way she could think of as a solution.

"And how exactly do we get back in time for a hundred years?" Odd questioned, "We barely turned back a few days when we first…"

"Not the good place, Odd." Ulrich said, glaring at his best friend. Really, they didn't mind Odd still talking about it, but they wouldn't accept the fact he was talking about it with three people around who had nothing to do with their business. Odd shrugged and Jeremy stepped forward. Sissi, Theo and William were having their own private conversation.

"Well, we do know this clock has been made by Hora Deltimi and we know he was kind of too busy with clocks and black magic, and we do know this might be one of those cursed clocks… with a bit of luck, this clock might be a portal to the past!" Jeremy finished his argumentation, sounding a little too enthusiast. William came closer again.

"And are you positively certain you're right about that?" Jeremy turned his head to him.

"Not really," he admitted and William sighed.

"Again with that being a portal?" Sissi said again, "I want proof!" she demanded, and it became silent again. If it was true, Sissi would really need proof to believe it was the reality. She'd be a lot harder to convince than those times she discovered the supercomputer. It stayed silent, until nobody dared said a word. Going to a virtual world? Okay, they'd be fine, Jeremy would warn them if something was wrong. Going through a portal to the past? No, definitely not, especially not since they couldn't communicate with Jeremy nor would they be able to know what to do and above all, they didn't know where they would end up. The only reference point they would have, was the clock.

"Can't someone run through it?" she continued, breaking the silence. For some reason she stared at Odd. At first he didn't see she was looking at him, but when he looked around, also Theo, William and Jeremy were looking at him. Almost as if they were pleading him to try it out. Jeremy wouldn't plea for it, off course, but someone has to try it. And soon Odd realized why they were looking at him.

"Oh, no way! I am not a test person!" Yumi sighed and pushed the scared boy out of the way. Yeah, Odd was scared. He just wasn't honest about his feelings and pretended to be braver than he now was. He might like all that scary stuff, but the reality still was scarier than they presented on the screen. Plus, it was more the fear of the unknown that scared him away. Yumi, on the other hand, was a little scared too, but was willing to try it.

"I'll do it," she said and without waiting for an answer, she walked to the clock. The others who cared about her told her she didn't need to do it (Odd said they could just push Sissi in there) but she ignored those calls and walked straight through the portal. The dark human-sized hole shone a blinding white light and Yumi disappeared through it, her dark clothing eventually blending in with the light she had stepped into.

And William became angry. Ulrich was mad, too, but he knew it was Yumi's choice to go there. William now tended to blame the ghost girl for what his beloved had done, believing that she-devil might have placed a curse on her to try something that could kill all of them. He turned around and advanced towards her.

"Look what you've done, you…" She merely pointed the palm of her hand towards the boy. He stopped in his tracks, mainly because an invisible force stopped him from moving. Then, Laura threw him with a simple gesture on the ground. He was silenced, yes, and now the fear replaced his anger about Yumi. Coming to his senses, he stood up and stumbled backwards, away from her. He would most likely not anger her again, that's for sure.

"I did not do anything, you fool!" she snapped at him, and she turned to the entire group, "She has arrived safely in 1908. I will go to her to aid her there. Goodbye." And the ghost girl disappeared in thin air, only to appear next to Yumi – or that is what they liked to believe.

"Is she gone?" Sissi asked the question with the obvious answer, and Theo nodded as response to her. But then, another problem arose. Who would follow Yumi through the portal and help find those keys so they could return to the present to disable the clock – if they destroyed it in the past, they would be stuck there.

"I'll go," Ulrich volunteered. And soon, they had already three people who would follow Yumi to the past. Coincidentally, those three teenagers were Ulrich, Odd and Aelita. Jeremy didn't like it Aelita would be going somewhere he couldn't see her. On Lyoko, she'd be fine – also because they would have powers and a ride. Luckily, they had already the experience they needed, from XANA who until now was believed gone. If that clock was XANA too...

"Maybe a fourth member will come in handy," Jeremy reasoned out loud, pushing away his thought about XANA, and before William could speak up and say he would be that fourth person, someone else was first.

"I'll do it!" Sissi said, walking over to Ulrich and grabbing his arm. But soon, she was holding the air as Ulrich freed himself from Sissi's grasp. And again, William was too slow with talking as Jeremy declared he agreed on sending Sissi to the past. He watched with a frown how Sissi and Aelita, followed by Ulrich and Odd, got to the portal, walking in one by one – two by two for Sissi and Aelita, because the first mentioned was actually very scared, though really brave at times.

"Say," William began after they were in the past, "why would you let _Sissi_ go to the past and not me? I could be of more importance there!"

"I know, but I need someone to go there when it goes very wrong there. Someone, that's you, will have to go in there as reinforcement and help them out of that situation." William nodded and noticed there was one important detail they still had to discuss.

"Didn't you forget one thing, Einstein? How are they supposed to communicate with us while they're a hundred years in the past and we are still here? I'm sure their phones won't work and sending an e-mail probably doesn't even exist." Jeremy opened his mouth to explain to him how they would communicate, but soon closed it as he realized that William was right! There really was no way to communicate.

The realization was clearly to be seen on the screen, as was the fear after he figured out he would not be able to hold contact with Aelita. Theo sighed.

"Way to go, Jeremy."

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><p><strong>That's that! Next chapter, we'll see them in 1908, if it really worked... Now, how can they send a distress call to the present? What is going to happen there? And above all, will they be discovered? We continue on the 13th of November. Before this ends, there is still a review I need to respond:<strong>

**Bluedog197** (In real life it's just a bit scarier than seeing it on TV. Thanks for the help, just too bad this site won't allow full links to other sites... try leaving a blank space before and after the dot, [like: fanfiction . net] than, it might work and thanks for the review!)

**See you next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	6. Welcome in 1908

**Chapter 5: Welcome in 1908**

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><p><strong>21st January 1908, 18:46<strong>

When she had walked through the clock, she had closed her eyes, waiting for the impact with the wall she would eventually walk into. Instead, she couldn't help but speed up, to run and to keep her eyes closed to make sure she wouldn't be blinded by its bright light. And eventually, she was no longer running, but it looked like she was pushed further and further, until she eventually hit the cold hard wooden floor.

When she got up, she was back at the theater, but it was different. The floor was completely made out of wood instead of the small parts that survived the fire, and the beautiful arch above her head was still complete.

That's when she realized it had worked. She was in the past. Next to her, the ghost girl Laura appeared, wearing a smile on her face. Yep, she was definitely back in time, but now she needed to know if they were in the right time. Because who said today was the 21st January of 1908? Who knew if today wasn't too early for her? She looked around, and then noticed the clock.

The clock was an old (or new) model, with Roman numbers I to XII, and on that plate the year was visible: 1908.

"_You did it_," Laura said with an enthusiastic voice, "_It worked._" Yumi almost laughed, too, but her current topic of interest was her clothing. She hadn't asked to switch clothes, but it had happened and part of her was grateful she wouldn't be immediately recognized as 'not from here'. She did prefer her own clothes, though. Right now, she was wearing a black dress that reached her ankles, complete with high heels and gloved hands. Yumi did not like her make-over.

That's when her attention turned back to the clock, and specifically to its location. There it stood, against the wall, inn the middle of the stage, in plain view, close to a thousands seats for those who would watch a show here. No wonder a lot of people died that day: they were seated close to the thing that will eventually cause the fire that will kill them.

Yumi then heard people talking. Without thinking, she and Laura hid behind the arch, hoping nobody would see them there, even if it wasn't the best place to hide. As they hid at the right side of the stage, three people entered the stage on its left. It was a man, accompanied by a boy and a girl. The boy looked a lot like Theo, and the girl was the still living version of Laura! When they had reached the middle of the stage, the Gauthier-trio stopped.

"Laura, darling," her father said, "Would you please wait here for the actors to arrive?" Laura politely answered with a 'yes, father' and her brother and father left her on the stage. The ghost version of Laura – who will now be referred to as simply the ghost to avoid confusion – walked closer to herself, studying her. At one point, Laura had looked straight through the ghost, and she hadn't seen her ghostly image. The ghost turned her head towards Yumi.

"She will help you," the ghost said, "when I… she… knows the truth and believes you, she will definitely help you." Yumi sighed. It was better to keep this business a secret. It was better not to trust anyone from this time, for doing things on their own – as the Lyoko Warriors – had always worked out better than having someone else in the group, like Sissi and William. But now… Laura still is the daughter of the big boss, she might know where he keeps the manual. She didn't like to make this decision on her own without consultation, but she did get up out of her hiding place and walked towards her. Eventually the high heels revealed her to the twelve year old, who looked up when she heard the sound.

"Hello," Laura said to the Japanese.

"Hello, Laura," Yumi replied and she realized she already made a mistake. The girl, wary of the lady in front of her, took a step back.

"How do you know my name?" she asked, and Yumi sighed inaubible and invisible for the twelve year old.

"I heard Teodoor Gauthier has a daughter named Laura and you look like him." Yumi said, hoping the girl in front of her would buy it. And seeing the look on her face, Laura was starting to believe her. Now came the harder part: to convince the girl she was from the future. "I'm from the future." the truth is: Yumi didn't exactly know how to break the ice with her and had decided to just tell her without too much blabber – that would only make it longer, which meant a lot of time was wasted. And time is something they desperately needed.

"I beg your pardon?" Laura said, and Yumi sighed. This wouldn't be easy.

"I am from the future. I came here to prevent a fire which will break out at half past seven and it will destroy this theater and everyone in here. And that clock will cause it." She knew by the look on her face she was scaring the young girl in front of her.

"I am going to warn my father," she said with an alarming voice in her tone. She was already walking away and Yumi looked at the ghost for back-up. The boys and Aelita weren't here, so she had to rely on the ghost. The ghost sighed and told her what to do and say.

"_Tell her about her doll named Tyrone!_" the ghost said, and Yumi took her advice. "Your doll's name is Tyrone. Is that true?" Laura nodded, and she took the same advice from the ghost, too. That way, she stopped the girl from walking away and getting her father. That way she could tell Laura her favorite color, meal and the name of her brother.

"Yes," Laura eventually answered after Yumi told her everything, "You're scaring me," she added, indicating she really was afraid of the Japanese girl standing in front of her. Yumi knelt down before the girl, as to get to her eye-level, so she wouldn't have to look up anymore. And then, in her sweetest voice imaginable, Yumi spoke again. "I don't want to scare you."

Laura thought about these words, but she also stood still. She wasn't going to her relatives anymore. For now, this was a good sign. For now, there would be no danger. Eventually, Laura began to talk. "I have a secret diary, and nobody knows where I hide it. And if you know, I believe you." It seemed logical. If this lady would know where her secret diary lies, she would not have gotten this information from someone else and she will be believed. Little did she know it was herself who gave the help.

"It's right here!" the ghost said, and Yumi walked over to the place where the ghost was standing. The ghost bowed down and her hand went straight to one of the planks. Yumi reached out for it and the plank could be lifted easily. So Yumi did, and she did find the little girl's diary. She took it out and handed it over to Laura.

"You are a ghost!" the girl exclaimed, and Yumi sighed again.

"I'm not a ghost. You can pinch me, if you want." she pulled out he arm, so Laura could pinch it. The Gauthier-girl took this opportunity and pinched her. Yumi pulled it away – that girl pinched her hard – and then Laura knew the lady in front of her was real and was telling the truth.

"I am sorry for not believing you," the girl said, and Yumi smiled.

"It's no problem." she replied. "I haven't introduced myself yet. I am Yumi Ishiyama." She wanted to shake the girl's hand, but she couldn't. The girl greeted Yumi in the way of 1908, and Yumi repeated her actions to greet her too. Better learn how to act around here.

"Why did you come here?" Laura eventually asked. Off course she wouldn't have believed Yumi in the first place, but now she knew Yumi could be trusted, she was more likely to listen to her words now. Yumi took a breath and started talking.

"Like I said before, I'm from the future and…" Right when she started talking, she heard a voice. That voice shouted out in surprise. She knew it had to be surprise, because that's the sound Ulrich always made when he was surprised. She looked back to Laura, who was looking at the clock warily. "Do you hear that?" the girl nodded, "Someone else is coming. Watch!" And so she watched. She watched how a boy around Yumi's age stumbled in and fell on the wooden stage floor, tripping over his own feet. Yumi hurried to him and helped him get up.

That is when he got to see Yumi in a dress for a change, and his cheeks turned red. "Yumi. You look… eh…" He couldn't find words for the beauty in front of him. Yumi started to blush, too, but not because of Ulrich's reaction. No, she herself looked at Ulrich's new attire as well.

"I can say the same about you." He was wearing something you wouldn't expect him wearing. First of all, he looked taller thanks to the top hat. His new clothes were almost all black: the long jacket, the pants, even the boots. The only part of his attire that wasn't black was his white shirt, neatly tucked in his pants. When he finally noticed his new clothes, he shrugged it off.

"It doesn't matter." he said to her, and his eyes slid to Laura. When he saw the ghostly presence of the same girl next to the one that was still alive, he realized Yumi must have been trying to get some help from the twelve year old. He looked at Yumi. "Did you try to explain it already?" Yumi nodded.

"I have tried." More cries from the clock. "Laura, Ulrich here will explain everything. I'll wait here for the others." Laura mouthed 'the others' before Odd and Aelita fell out of the clock, stumbling just like Ulrich. The last would be Sissi, coming in the same way as the four Lyoko Warriors.

Odd looked like Ulrich, only all of his clothes weren't black but brown (again with the exception of the shirt) and he didn't have a top hat, but a bottom hat. Also, his hair was dangling down his ears, for the clock apparently removed any hair gel that kept it standing up. Aelita and Sissi also couldn't escape the change of clothing either, and they now wore dresses. Aelita was wearing a pink one, Sissi a red one. Both girls were wearing high heels, something Aelita was having difficulty with, and their hands had gloves, too. Aelita's gloves stopped at her wrists, but Sissi's reached to her elbows. To be honest, both girls looked even more beautiful than they were in the present.

"Ulrich…" Odd began when he noticed Ulrich's change of clothes, and he started to grin, "You look ridiculous! Why don't I have my phone with me right now?" Ulrich sighed.

"Well, if you must know, you look exactly the same, except you're completely brown." He stated. While Yumi turned her attention to the three who already came here, Ulrich turned his to Laura. He now had to explain what was about to happen to the girl. "Okay, Laura," he began, "We come from the future. I know it sounds crazy, but it's true. We're here to prevent a fire to burn down this building, but to do that, we need to stop the clock, too. Do you know where the manual is, or something?" He wasn't exactly sure if there came a manual with the clock. He'd better guess, and now it seemed he had guessed right.

"My father has it," she replied. Ulrich didn't hear Yumi talk, so she must have told them everything – including the fact that the girl couldn't see her own ghost. Ulrich didn't need to be told that, because he had seen it in front of him, talking to Laura. The ghost had walked in front of her and she hadn't seen herself.

"Where is your father?" Ulrich asked, but that wasn't necessary. The next moment, the air was filled with a welcoming laughter from Mr. Teodoor Gauthier.

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><p><strong>And that concludes this chapter! I'm sorry for being one day late, but my teachers decided I can't have any free time.<strong>** The next chapter will (hopefully) appear the 20th of November. My exams are also coming closer, so it could be possible I won't update the fourth and eleventh of December. You've been warned... Also, this story isn't going to be very long - it might be already done in fifteen chapters (or more, or less). And now, the review:**

**Bluedog197** (Thanks for the review! Your help was really helpful - I just hope the description of the clothes was good enough. I also didn't really meant that scene to be funny, but if you like it, I'm happy for the rest of the week!)

**See you next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	7. Sun, sand and water

**Chapter 6: Sun, sand and water**

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><p><strong>21st January 1908, 18:56<strong>

"Welcome, dearest actors, to my theater," Theo Gauthier greeted them. Odd and Aelita exchanged looks.

"Wait, we're no…" Odd began, but Mr. Teodoor Gauthier just continued as if he hadn't heard the young man speak at all.

"I am sure you've all heard about Mr. Hora Deltimi and his interests in this theater. Thanks to his generous gifts we new have a beautiful new clock along with this nice arch…" He was trailing off, he realized, "Let us not get into detail about that. I hope my daughter has cared for you well." The man opened his arms and Laura walked over to her father so he could put his arm around her shoulders. His son Remy was nowhere to be seen, so he probably had to do something else.

_Maybe we can trust him,_ Aelita thought. He seemed like the helpful fellow who wouldn't waste any time and help them out wherever he can. However, Aelita could say nothing as Sissi was already busy with blowing their cover.

"Say, mister," she began in her arrogant voice, "we're not actors, do you hear? We're just children! And that clock, that gift, it is cursed or bewitched or … anyway, it's going to start something terrible so we need to stop it." Yumi pulled her back, but the Japanese was too slow in covering the principal's daughter's mouth. The man looked wary at the five.

"Stop it? I'd rather not, he's just new! Besides, even if you want it stopped and removed, this manual gives an awful lot of instructions which aren't very easy to decipher." To make his argument sound better, he had pulled out the manual and showed the large paper to the teens, but he made sure they wouldn't be able to read what was on it.

"If we can take a look at it, then…" Ulrich suggested and already tried to grasp the manual, but Teodoor knew what was going on and he pulled it back in his pockets immediately, and Ulrich was forced to pull back after his failed attempt to get the manual.

"Absolutely not!" Teodoor exclaimed, "Who do you think you are? And if you are no actors, then what are you?" This silenced the five of them. Aelita had to correct herself in her thought. He seemed like the kind of guy who helped but would go to the police whenever something strange was going on, like the five young adults having too much interest in his clock. There was no time for hesitation now.

"We are the actors!" she said loud enough for everyone to hear. Odd, standing closest to her, was giving her the exact same look the others were giving her: one filled with confusion.

"What are you… ouch!" Aelita elbowed him and he turned towards Teodoor, who still was cautious, "I mean, yes! We are the actors! This was just an example of our great improvisation act! Right, guys?" Yumi and Ulrich had already guessed where Aelita was going, Sissi just guessed what was happening around them. The girls nodded, and Ulrich sighed and muttered something about 'exaggeration'. One moment, Teodoor and the others stayed quiet and the whole room fell silent with it. This silence was broken by Teodoor, who laughed and was buying their lie.

"That was amazing!" he exclaimed, "Bravissimo! You truly are great!" They nodded and laughed too, as if they were sharing a joke with the boss. It was fine now, the situation was under control. As long as Teodoor believed it was true, they were safe and wouldn't be taken to the police or to someone else. Luckily their laughs sounded honest, although Ulrich was having trouble making his laughter sound believable.

"Off course it was an act!" Sissi added, "I mean, who can travel through time?"

"Nobody can!" Teodoor answered her rhetorical question. He indeed looked like a good and honest man, but he'd probably change when you were on his bad side. And while he was laughing, Ulrich managed to steal the manual from him without him noticing and if he had felt something, he did not show this. But still, they couldn't start their mission until Teodoor couldn't see or hear what was going on. And luckily, Sissi was on a roll now.

"Can you show me where the restroom is, please?"she asked the man, and he nodded. He lead her to the right side of the stage, where they entered a hallway – apparently leading towards the restroom. Laura and the ghost followed their (her?) father. Laura followed him because that was probably what her father wished her to do and the ghost wanted to see her father in the last half hour before the fire would start. They Lyoko Warriors were left without the help from either girl.

When they were very sure Teodoor couldn't see or hear them, Ulrich unfolded the manual. There was a lot of detail about this particular clock, but he quickly found what he was looking for: how to stop it. He read this section out loud so they wouldn't waste time by everyone reading it separately.

"_To stop the clock, you need to find three keys hidden here, which will appear after fulfilling three tasks._ Huh, seems easy enough._ Before the clock was invented, there were others methods of measuring time. Here is a clue:_ _Sun, sand and water will give you an idea; time is not reversible, but you'll find the key in me."_ He looked up from the paper, "does anyone know what that means?"

"That he was bad with rhymes?" Odd suggested, scratching the back of his head. "Is this is all we'll have to do, then I'd prefer fighting Krabs. Or Tarantulas." Now we know Odd would rather fight XANA then to solve a ridiculous riddle, the others were still thinking about all the possibilities. Yet, the results would have to be hurried because the clock was ticking.

So was Aelita still deep in thought. She sighed. "What was the clue again?" she asked, and Ulrich repeated it. Aelita had taken particular interests in the first part. Sun, sand and water will give you and idea … sun, sand and water… "Sun… sand… water… I got it!" she exclaimed when she thought to know what Deltimi meant with that line. She also explained it to the rest of them, " Three other instruments to measure time won't work without sun sand and water. They're a sundial, an hourglass and a water clock!"

"Okay! That's great, princess, but how do you plan on finding those in a great building like this?" Odd said with all due respect.

"On the arch," Yumi said and she pointed at the right side of the arch, " They're on the arch. When I arrived here, I had to hide. And when I was hiding, it was behind on of the arch's pillars. I hid behind the hourglass, on the other side is the water clock and up there is the sundial." Odd grinned.

"Alright, now we're getting somewhere! So, what else does that clue say?" Ulrich opened the manual. He repeated the clue and then gave his thoughts of it.

"Er… the first key can be found in or with one of those three. And I personally don't think it's the hourglass."

"And I can't be the sundial either," Aelita said, "because we won't be able to reach it." For some weird reason, Odd started to laugh.

"Are you serious? We can reach it! I can climb to it and …"

"No!" was the unanimous answer from the three others. This wasn't Lyoko. If Odd fell, he'd be hurt and maybe even dead. They couldn't lose life points, only their lives. They wouldn't be devirtualized, but dead. And it seemed Odd thought of this as an alternative trip to a Lyoko world looking like a theater building. But the strong message when saying the 'no' made Odd stay on the ground a little longer. Good. Now back to business.

"So if it isn't the sundial or the hourglass, it has to be that water clock." Yumi reasoned, and all of them agreed. On moments like this, they really missed Einstein. He would've probably glanced at it and pointed at the answer immediately, giving a long scientific explanation only Aelita could understand. They realized that, without Jeremy's help, this trip could be a lot different than they imagined. But now back to business: the water clock.

"Okay. How does it work?" Odd asked.

"We pour water in it and it works. At least, that's what I think it does." Ulrich said.

"So, where are we gonna get some water?" Before anyone could answer Aelita question, someone ran onto the stage. Luckily, that someone was just Sissi. She looked exhausted – it wasn't easy running on high heels with a heavy dress! – was panting and was telling them they had to hurry, repeating this a lot of time.

"Where's Teodoor?" Odd asked, hoping Sissi would say she'd lost him somewhere.

"I killed him," she said dryly. The others reacted shocked and she sighed. "What is wrong with you? Geez, it was just sarcasm. No, I locked him up in the bathroom." Okay, that was a little better. But still…

"You locked him in the bathroom?" Ulrich asked, and Sissi nodded.

"I figured we needed time to do this. So, what has happened when I lured him to the bathroom?" They explained everything to her, and she nodded, listening very carefully to their words. When they were done talking, she disappeared again, walking off the stage. The others wondered what she was doing, but she returned as quick as she left, with a watering-can in her hands. She laughed.

"You didn't think I'd leave you here, did you? I too don't want to die here." she handed the watering-can to Yumi, who could reach the place where to pour the water in the easiest. They all got ready, all eyes on Yumi. She got in position, and slowly tilted the watering-can, carefully pouring its water into the water clock.

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><p><strong>That was the sixth chapter with cliffhanger. What's goig to happen now? How are the guys in the present doing right now? Which one do you thnk? holds the first key? Only time will tell. The next update will probably be the last one before I start the exams. I have my first exam the fourth, and with a bit of luck I will update then too, but as I said before, only time will tell. Before I close this chapter off, respond to the review:<strong>

**Bluedog197** (Popcorn? Please, this isn't my best work and it's not really popcorn-worthy either... and thanks for the review!)

**See ya next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	8. Planets

**Chapter 7: Planets**

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><p><strong>21st January 1908, 19:05<strong>

Nothing spectacular happened. The only difference with the seconds before the water hit the water clock was the loud ticking of the clock and the shouts of 'stop it!'. Yumi immediately pulled back, and looked around what was wrong. She saw the eyes of her friends and Sissi were fixed on the clock, and when she looked up, the clock suddenly moved five minutes forward. She put down the can and stepped away from the water clock. So it's not the water clock, that was clear. Two reasons: no key to be seen, and the clock moved.

"So it's not the water clock," Odd said, just for those who still doubted (Sissi). "Then, which one is it?" It had to be either the sundial or the hourglass. But which one was it? If they made another mistake, they might lose five more minutes and have only twenty more minutes to find the other two keys. Aelita sighed – she wished Jeremy was here. But if Jeremy was here, she could guess what he would say to Ulrich:

"Why do you think it isn't the hourglass?" She asked and Ulrich looked up. He pointed at the manual.

"Because of the clue. Time is not reversible – but that thing is. That's why it can't be trusted." Now Aelita sighed again.

"That means it is the hourglass." Ulrich looked at her with a non-understanding look in his eyes, "Time can't be reversed. But an hourglass can be turned around, can be reversed, so it is logical if the key is hidden in there." Ulrich looked at Aelita, at the hourglass and back at Aelita. The room had fallen silent, everyone had heard their words.

Without further waiting, Ulrich walked to that hourglass, telling the others to watch that clock. If it was the wrong choice, he had to know before wasting too much time. Slowly, he turned it around and the gravity did what it was good at – pulling sand down with gravity. Nobody warned him for the clock, so he guessed this was going the right way. And soon, the key was visible – they eventually had to break the glass to get the key out of there.

"Okay, were do I place it?" Ulrich asked – he had given Aelita the manual just in case something happened to him. She unfolded it and pointed at the clock.

"There should be three holes in which they keys should be placed from left to right. It took a while, but soon Ulrich found it and he placed the key in the hole, asking for further directions. Aelita searched the next instruction which could lead them to the next key, so they could hurry up here and go back home. "_The rotation of the earth used when measuring time. The…_"

"Rotation?" Sissi asked, not sure what they were talking about, "What's that?"

"Did you never pay attention at geography?" Odd asked her, and she glared at him. He just couldn't resist joking around, could he? Luckily, Yumi was there to explain to her that one day is over when the earth has rotated around its axis. Then, Aelita continued. "_The planets help with this, too. You will find the next key in the middle of this galaxy."_ She looked up, a signal to make tell this was all they got for the second key.

"That's all we got? No clue or anything?" Ulrich asked, and Aelita shook her head. That was really all they got. Now what?

"Oh, there's the earth!" Sissi said, pointing at the water clock at the right side of the arch. Above that water clock was a bronze earth at the arch, and she walked towards it.

"What are you doing?" Ulrich wanted to know.

"Maybe this can help us!" She explained, and tried to reach out for it. Ulrich decided to ignore her and focused on the task at hand. "Okay, the key is in the middle of the galaxy. Does anyone know what it means?" They shook their heads.

"Maybe the sun?" Odd suggested, but nobody said anything as response. They were still thinking, but they did consider the idea of the sun being the middle point of the galaxy. It had to be something with the sun … "Maybe the next key is in the sundial!" Odd exclaimed after seconds of thinking, and nobody did have the time to react on this.

Suddenly, the lights went out and it became dark in there, except for the lights above them and the globe Sissi was standing next to. Yumi immediately walked over to the girl. "What did you do?" she asked, and Sissi shrugged.

"I was just pin-pointing our location, but this happened when I touched it!" She admitted and she hid behind the young man she loved since he showed up at Kadic. Nothing actually happened, except some lights from above them. There were ten lights, all different in brightness and color, and they were slowly descending to them. Ten big balls slowly came down until they lay on the ground. They differed in size, brightness and height. There were big ones, small ones, one resembled earth, one had rings and the one in the middle was the biggest of all.

"That's the sun," Odd pointed out, stating the obvious, "I told you the sun's in the middle of the universe!"

just in case someone still didn't understand what happened. The rest didn't need to be spoken out loud; Odd had been right and the key should, according to the instructions in the manual, be in the middle of this galaxy, which is the sun. there was only one problem: they didn't see any key.

"How are we gonna get that key?" Ulrich asked, looking at the clock. He really hated this time pressure. Oh, if only they could contact Jeremy right now – he'd know what to do right now…

"What if we place the planets in the right order?" Aelita suggested, and everyone nodded, except for Sissi, who didn't really like that plan. Maybe she was just irritated because nobody had thanked her for finding out what to do next, or it might be because the boys gave more attention to Yumi and Aelita than her.

"It could be the solution… but I am sure nobody knows in which order those planets have to be placed."

"I do," Yumi said, "I had to know the right order for geography a few months ago." Sissi grumbled something, and went to stand at the side. Nobody gave her the attention she needed and usually received from Nicholas and Herve, and instead they worked on finding the next key. They still had only less than half an hour to find the two keys and stop the clock.

"Alright. Let's begin close. First comes the sun, then comes Mercury." They were lucky the names of the planets were semi-written on the balls. And as Yumi recited the order of the planets starting from the sun, the others placed the planets in the right order – all except for Sissi, who still refused to help and even considered to go back.

"After Mercury is Venus. The earth comes third and then comes Mars, the red one." They worked like a good team, and Yumi herself placed Mars on the fourth spot, "Those were the smallest planets, now the big ones. There's Jupiter and Saturn. Then it's only Uranus and…" Yumi stopped talking, and only because she was interrupted by Odd. He couldn't help but laugh at the way the name of the last planet was pronounced.

"What's so funny?" Ulrich asked, and Odd tried to stop laughing to answer his best friend.

"S-She said…"

"We know what she said, genius, now stop being a child and help them." Odd glared at Sissi.

"You shouldn't care about this, Sissi, you're not even helping!" She rolled her eyes and grabbed Uranus, placing it in the right position. Nobody needed to know the name of the last planet to place that one in its right position. Before they would do anything else, Yumi looked at them to see if they were in the right order, looking for possible mistakes her friends could have made. When she decided there were none, there was nothing more they could do, except to wait.

Sissi talked through it, because she was irritated by the lack of reaction and sure, the others heard it, but they did not pay attention to it – and after a half a minute wait, they saw how the sun lighted up and showed the shadow of the key being inside it. Odd and Ulrich quickly searched for the way to open it, and soon they were holding the key in their hands, placing it at the clock, ready for the next task for the third key.

They had no idea they had been watched by a curious boy who was wondering where his sister and father were.

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><p><strong>That was the sixth chapter with cliffhanger. What's going to happen now? How are the guys in the present doing right now? Which one do you think holds the first key? Only time will tell. And I hope it was worth the wait. I'm done with my exams, so the next chapter will be published on the 25th. Before I close this chapter off, I first respond to the review:<strong>

**Bluedog197** (I know, she's got a big mouth and some idiotic ideas, but she really helps even though the others don't realize it. And thanks for the review!)

**See ya next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	9. Laura at work

**Chapter 8: Laura at work**

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><p><strong>21st January 1908, 19:16<strong>

Just as they were about to read what they had to do next, they heard footsteps coming their way. They did not have the time to hide nor to put the manual somewhere the person who was coming wouldn't see it. That way, they were caught by Gauthier. He walked to them, pointing an old gun at them and the teens quickly raised their hands. Behind him walked Laura and her ghost and next to him smirked Laura's brother Remy, pointing with his finger at the five.

"I told you, father!" the boy said, "I told you there were doing something suspicious." Teodoor nodded, and put his free hand on his son's shoulder, visibly proud of his son being able to unmask these strangers.

"Tie them up, Remy." Teodoor said, and Remy grabbed some rope from behind the scene and began to bind their hands together. Has Remy binded their hands together, Teodoor continued talking. "I don't know who you are, but you're a little too interested in that clock. My clock."

"I'm sorry, sir," Ulrich tried to reason with him, "But we can explain everything."

"You can explain it to the police." Sissi's mouth fell open, she ignored the gun and walked closer to the big boss with his gun. "But we didn't do anything wrong!" Sissi pouted, and Teodoor looked at her, even angrier than just a few moments ago.

"You locked me and my daughter in the restroom!"

"It was an accident!" Sissi tried to sound innocent, but she wasn't believed. Instead, she was taken back to the group and bound together with the others.

"And I'm supposed to believe that, witch!" he shouted, and turned to Ulrich, who still held the manual in his hands, "And you have stolen the instructions." He roughly took the manual out of Ulrich's free hand and Remy bound his wrists to Sissi's left and Yumi's right. When they were all done and Teodoor was about to leave, Aelita saw the ghost girl at the other side of the stage staring at them. Because she was just standing, Aelita just had to say something to the ghost.

"Do something!" she asked, but it was too loud. The Gauthier family heard her words and Teodoor became too curious not to say something.

"Who are you talking to?" Teodoor asked and Aelita shook her head.

"Nobody." was her answer, and he huffed, taking a good look at the group of teenagers that had taken too much interest in the clock.

"Nobody? You all are bewitched!"

"Oh, and you're not crazy?" Sissi dared to say. She didn't even have to think of a way to come back at him, she just did. Nobody could tell if she thought about those words or if she just said them impulsively. Teodoor rose an eyebrow.

"I beg your pardon?" he said and Sissi just continued. She could continue because none of the Lyoko Warriors could put their hands in front of her mouth to make her stop talking.

"We don't have time for this! This building will burn down!"

"I am going to call the police." Teodoor said and Remy was finished binding them together. Before leaving, he handed the gun over to the boy. "Here, Remy. Take the gun. If they want to run, you just shoot." The guy looked as if Christmas came early and he eagerly took the gun from his father.

"I won't disappoint you, father." Teodoor disappeared, leaving his children to watch over those criminals. Remy was clearly enjoying this position, but it hurt Laura not to do anything. She believed those people, but she could not do anything about it. Her older brother and father won't allow it. If she sided with those people, there was a chance the policemen were going to take her away as well. They would question her in her involvement, but she'd never see they light of day again. Or that's the tale her brother always told her: criminals never see the light of day again. That's the hard truth, because most criminals indeed never left the prison, or they did after a long time. So the police would take their lives away from them – no matter if they were locked away or would get a bullet through their body.

Eventually, Ulrich spoke. "So, what are we suppose to do now?"

"Laura, why don't you help us?" Odd tried to say, but before Laura could even think of a proper way to answer, Remy talked.

"Oh, she will certainly not help you, okay? We have clear orders from our father not to let you go. If one of you even moves one foot, I will pull the trigger." _Where did that kid become so violent? _Was the question lingering in each of their minds, along with the bigger question of how this kid could ever get married, get a son, who would get a son named Theo. Aelita looked at the ghost, and then had a plan in mind.

"You don't need to do anything," Aelita then said, surprising everyone present. "You don't even need to free us. All you need to do is take this necklace." Aelita was wearing a necklace she had gotten from Einstein. It was a simple necklace and the first piece of jewelry she had gotten after Lyoko. Normally she wouldn't wear it, but today she decided to wear it anyway.

"But I am not allowed to do anything," Laura protested, and Remy nodded.

"You will not do anything as long as I am holding this gun." He said, and Aelita looked at the ghost, who was just as eager to shut her brother up as her brother was eager to hold the gun. She moved her hand up, and grasped something in the air. When she lowered her arm, Remy's arm obediently followed, lowering itself. Remy, who had no idea what was going on, tried to keep it in the air, but it wouldn't budge. He then took a look at the girl with the pink hair. The girl who most likely was a witch.

"What are you doing to me, witch!" he asked, not loud enough for his father to hear. He did not seem as content as he used to be, but he just seemed to be afraid of the pink-haired girl. Nobody could blame him; if the same would happen to you, you'd react the same, but with some variation. Laura also started to get anxious and looked at Aelita, who seemed to possess supernatural powers.

"It's nothing," she assured the human girl, and Laura relaxed. They would not touch her, and she was actually enjoying seeing her once so calm brother panicking about something he couldn't control. The ghost opened her hand and the gun dropped on the ground. Remy already bowed down to grab the gun, but something stopped him. How hard he tried, he could not get any deeper through his knees. Instead, he stood up again and walked to the wall, and the ghost placed him with his face to the wall.

Now could her brother no longer see her, and now Laura dared to take action. She walked over to the group and took Aelita's necklace, waiting for more instructions, which she got. "Place the necklace and your doll in the trapdoor." Laura's eyes widened as she heard she had to put her doll and the nice girl's necklace in the trapdoor where she hid her diary.

"My doll?" She said, and Aelita nodded.

"You will get it back. We just want to warn some friends." Laura immediately knew what she meant and she obediently placed the necklace and the doll in the trapdoor. When she was doing that, they asked Aelita why she would want Laura to do that, and she started to explain the situation. "There still were pieces of the old floor in the renovated theater. With a bit of luck, those planks are part of the planks that survived."

"Are you sure?" Yumi asked, and Aelita shook her head.

"Not really." she admitted, "but at least we have to try." That was the moment the ghost chose to release her irritating brother, who was surprised by the sudden control of his body. He turned around, and was indeed very scared.

"Watch out, boy. If you tell your daddy about this, she might do it again." Odd joked, and this time it was right on time. With that joke, he made sure Remy wouldn't talk about the things he had just heard and the tricks his deceased sister had performed on him. The most beautiful part of it: he had absolutely no idea what was going on around him.

And now the group hoped the guys found the things Laura just placed in the trapdoor.

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><p><strong>Hey, guys! Since it's Christmas, I think this might be considered my gift to you. Merry Christmas! Also, will the guys in the present figure out their friends in the past are in big trouble? And the next chapter will be published on the first day of 2015, so it's a perfect opportunity to go back to the present to find out what they're doing to kill time. Bu<strong>**t now comes the review:**

**Bluedog197** (I have good results, so yeah! As for the future, we'll have to wait for a particular chapter, but this story won't be as long as Simulation [max. 17 chapters])

**See ya next time! Merry Christmas and happy holidays!**

**-DutchWriters2**


	10. Virtualization!

**Chapter 9: Virtualization**

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><p><strong>21st January 2008, 19:14<strong>

The Lyoko Warriors (plus Sissi) were gone for almost half an hour, and time was starting to run out. They had no way to communicate, which really bugged Jeremy. There was no way they could talk to them, no way to hear or see if Aelita was fine, to see if the others were fine. This wasn't just another task of saving the world; Jeremy had the hard task coping with no communication whatsoever.

He started to like fighting XANA more than the events of today.

In this half hour, they hadn't exactly done anything. Jeremy had stayed on his place, regularly standing up and looking at the time, which seemed to have slowed down. He also was the only one who kept a close eye on the clock itself instead of just looking on it to know the time. He had seen two keys had appeared at the clock, and if he was correct, one more should appear. But what did they need to do after that?

Theo had been constantly walking around, even if it was just slowly walking around. He had been in each corner of the theater, looking around for any hints or anyone who could possibly still be inside. He warned everyone he could warn, but they wouldn't listen to a kid who probably made up the lie a clock (which wasn't there before) would burn down this place at exactly half past seven, or in about fifteen minutes. Time was running out.

William had exactly been doing the same as Theo, but he had given up and read the newspaper instead. If Theo didn't want anyone to read it, he shouldn't have let it lie around where someone like Dunbar could easily pick it up and read what the people wrote exactly one hundred years ago. He read the article multiple times, but eventually his eyes wandered off to the advertisements. Yes, they had advertisements, but these were just written texts on a paper printed in black & white. One of those caught his eyes, and he almost laughed out loud. The man who put this in the paper must've really been an idiot. I mean, judge it yourself: _If you want to stay with time; not left to right, and with rhyme._ William looked at the name to make sure he knew who he was laughing at, but after reading it, he didn't laugh.

That advertisement was written by Hora Deltimi. Wasn't he the guy who built that killing machine?

"Guys, you might wanna read this." he said, looking at Jeremy and Theo, who had returned. They came closer and when Theo saw William was somewhat pointing at the article, he sighed. Jeremy, on the other hand, was curious about the article William just read and even asked what he had read. Theo didn't listen, because he was interested in the sudden change of planks in the theater floor.

"Listen: _If you want to stay with time; not left to right, and with rhyme_. This is some advertisement under the article. And it was written by Hora Deltimi." Jeremy almost ripped the paper trying to pull it out of his hands to see it for himself, and he read it out loud again. "What does that mean?" William wanted to know, and Jeremy shook his head.

"I don't know," he admitted, "Oh, if only I could contact Aelita – then we'd figure it out together."

"You're pretty good on your own, too, Einstein. Think about all the great things you've done before… you know." Theo still doesn't know about the secret of Lyoko, and they'd better keep it that way. This might not be XANA they were fighting now, but it was a gift of Theo's great-grandfather, so in a way the young boy was connected with this, just like Aelita with Lyoko. Luckily, that chapter was closed off. Now only the future rested.

Jeremy shook his head. "I don't know why he would write something like this. He clearly knew it was his clock who caused it, so why would he write something like this in the local newspaper, where everyone can read it?"

"To warn them?" William suggested, "or maybe they were like us now. It's just the advertisement, it isn't important to us. Nobody ever looks at the advertisement when they can read of a fire." Jeremy nodded – William could be right, but they still didn't know why it was in the paper. It wasn't a reason to send William to the past, either.

Guys…" now that's a reason to send William to the past, "Look what I found." Jeremy and William turned their heads and saw Theo was sitting next to an open trapdoor and was holding two things. One of them was an old doll and the other one was a necklace. And Jeremy, to his big surprise, recognized this necklace. He walked closer and took the necklace in his hands.

"This is Aelita's." He almost added the reason of him giving it to Aelita, but was wise enough to shut his mouth. William would have grinned if Jeremy did continue talking, and Theo would just have looked at them in confusion. As the other boys looked at the doll and discussed where else they've seen it, Jeremy himself was deep in thought. _What is Aelita's necklace doing here? There must be a good reason for it, she almost never wears it and if she wears it, she'd never take it off out of her room unless there is an emergency. Oh no…_

"Something is wrong with them." Almost he said 'Aelita'. Almost. Theo and William came closer to him.

"That's what we thought. Also, we think this is the doll the ghost girl carried with her." Theo was talking, and Jeremy nodded.

"Okay, that's it. William, get ready for virtualization."

"What?" That was Theo, and only then Jeremy realized his mistake. William looked at Jeremy, eyes widened and Jeremy looked back at the black-haired boy. But when it was clear Theo didn't even think about it and just let it slip, Jeremy and William calmed down. He should really mind his vocabulary around Theo.

"Just go. Take these with you," Jeremy handed the doll and the necklace to William, "and good luck." William nodded, and he ran through the portal that would lead him to the past. He did not look back as he ran into the blinding white light.

* * *

><p><strong>Happy new year everyone! I know, this chapter is rather short, but there wasn't anything else important there was to say, so I hope you'll forgive me. Next chapter, we will stay in the present. Theo makes a discovery which might help them out. Next update will be the 8th of January. This is it for today, but not before I have ended this chapter with the review:<strong>

**Bluedog197** (Kill them? No, he just thought they were criminals and tried to keep them on their place until the police arrived, but I can see the confusion. And thanks for reviewing!)

**See ya next time!**

**-DutchWriters2**


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